Trapper Safety

Trapping is a constitutional right and is the one of the most regulated of wildlife harvesting methods. It is legal in Oregon, Washington and Idaho. Despite that a recent newspaper editorial stated that this right should be restricted or banned based on a couple of instances last year where dogs in Idaho were accidently caught and killed in body-gripping conibear traps. Make no mistake, Fish and Game officials and trappers empathize with the owners of those dogs, but feel it is better to use education, rather than restrictions or bans to prevent these kinds of unfortunate occurrences from happening in the future. Idaho Fish and Game's Mike Keckler is among NW officials who are very proactive about keeping trapping within the list of options for outdoorsmen.

 

Fish and Game staff throughout the Northwest have been instructed to work with trappers to develop proposals requiring trapper education for trappers. Commissioners believe mandatory trapper education courses should include instruction in ethics and best practices on how and where traps are placed on the landscape.  This should help to reduce instances of dogs and other non-targeted species being caught not only in conibear-type traps, but foothold traps and snares as well. 

 

Mandatory hunter education became a requirement in many states and the accident rate has dropped significantly over the years. The vast majority of trappers conduct themselves responsibly too and Fish and Game staff are confident that like hunter education, trapper education will make a difference.